


Ishgardian Academy of Excellence, Student Stories: Ella

by HawkSong, kittysomerville, Phaeryl, RedWyvern



Series: Ishgardian Academy of Excellence [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Dark, F/F, F/M, Final Fantasy XIV Modern High School AU, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Multi, Other, Past Abuse, Psychological Trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-20
Updated: 2021-03-20
Packaged: 2021-03-29 01:54:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30148965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HawkSong/pseuds/HawkSong, https://archiveofourown.org/users/kittysomerville/pseuds/kittysomerville, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phaeryl/pseuds/Phaeryl, https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedWyvern/pseuds/RedWyvern
Summary: Berylla Seahawk isn't the only new student to Ishgard from Limsa.---Personal student OC for the IAE, Ella Seawright. 14, orphan of the sea, finds out she's a Haillenarte. Unfortunately, however, she may have been a bit too close to the shady goings on on the Limsa docks...---PLEASE NOTE: While overall the tone of this series is intended to be lighter, there are still darker elements within. While this chapter may not touch too heavily on it, it's implied abuse of minors and the psychological and physical trauma and issues that go with are there, along with racism and other issues present in a modern society.  Please mind the tags.
Series: Ishgardian Academy of Excellence [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2201694
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	Ishgardian Academy of Excellence, Student Stories: Ella

Several people breathed a sigh of relief as the airship started to descend towards Ishgard. The long, unknown delay in Limsa had left the people on board restless, and in some cases, with a growing state of anxiety and fear. Most of the travelers were seasoned pros, business folk used to travel. Others were vacationers, returning to Ishgard after time in the ocean breezes at Costa Del Sol, or hot springs of Bronze Lake. Not many go to Ishgard for their free time. 

It certainly wasn’t on the list of places Ella had ever wanted to see in her life, except to maybe learn how to cloud fish from some of the old masters of the nearly forgotten craft. Aside from that? No desire, and after the loss of her parents, even the discovery of distant family didn’t increase that. She wanted to stay with what she considered her _real_ family, the members of Limsa’s fisherman's guild, who had been taking care of her the last year since the boating accident. But since none of them really had the means or space in their lives to take her into their family, they had run out of time and options, and the Admiralty felt that the far off Ishgardians were responsible once they had agreed, and away she went. Certainly, they were nice enough, the ones who had come down to meet her in Limsa, but that didn’t mean she wanted to be there. Making sure she was there before the next school year started had her rushed out faster than she’d have liked, but when you’re fourteen, you didn’t have much say in the matter.

Her mood was already sour, even if the first time trip on the airship was a bit distracting. When the navigator announced the impending arrival into Ishgard, her heart sank and she sighed, gathering together her small suitcase and bag, trying hard to not think of how much she didn’t want to be there. To follow that up, and then, as she got off the airship and into the crowded airport, she spotted one of the men who she knew to often lurk around the Navigator’s Way, the now burnt down orphanage she was thankful to never have to set foot in, and she _really_ didn’t want to be in Ishgard. 

It was a hyur, a highlander by her reckoning, all wirey and sinewy, the sort who excelled at quick movements and made the wise hold their precious belongings a bit closer. Black hair was nearly shaved off, a buzz over his skull. She couldn’t tell the color of his eyes, but they were dark and angry, accented by the scowl on his features. Here he actually wore clothing that looked fit for a trip to Ishgard, still marked as an outsider, but blended in well enough in a crowded airport. She was used to seeing him without a shirt on and simple pants and boots, knowing his back was covered with a tattoo that spoke exactly to what his profession was. She knew of two reasons why he would possibly be there, and vacation was neither of them. 

Back in Limsa, while most of the reporters harassed the poor girl who survived the fire, a few who were more dedicated to those sleazy courtroom shows were looking for information of any kind, and responsible for most of the rumors as to what was really going on. They were also constantly down at the docks, asking questions of everyone who was around. It was after one of the other fisherman saw Ella on one of those shows as the reporter followed her, shouting a bunch of questions about drugs and money and worse, the guild made her stay inside. 

A day or two later, she had overheard a meeting, late at night when all the boats were in and near all the guild was tucked into the building like packed harbor herring, talking in hushed tones about worries that information given to the Yellowjackets about the orphanage and the boats occasionally parked near it had been leaked because of the things happening of late. Boats had been damaged intentionally, lines cut, nets torn. Information not just leaked, but told who had given the intel, to the press and to the minders of men like the one Ella was currently trying to not panic about. Several muttered that they never should have spoken to the Yellowjackets in the first place. Only a few in the guild knew that _she_ was the one who had talked to the authorities first, insisting on telling the stories that some of the kids from there had told her, furious inside at the loss of friends, and at herself, for not having spoken up sooner. Yellowjackets, Maelstrom, and one of the Sisters even had all heard her story. While she didn’t regret it, hearing Sisipu and Wawalago the next day talking about having Ella go out on the fishing boats for safety, made her realize that she had made herself a target.

The fear rose in her chest as Ella tried to stay near a family of elezen as they wrangled their luggage, her mind racing with her options. For all she knew, he was looking for the roe girl, and not _her_ , but she didn’t want to risk it either way. Joye, the nice teen in the employ of her new family and future roommate was going to meet her at the exit down to the trains, and after a check of her phone, she had no signal to try to call her. “Damn.” She muttered under her breath. She stood out like a sore thumb there in so many ways. Being a mixed Ishgardian elezen and midlander hyur might not be obvious in Limsa, but in Ishgard itself, she had no doubts that people would instantly notice her mingled features, her blunter pointed ears and facial structure. She could get away with being tall for a hyur but she knew she would be short for an elezen, in the end. The darker tan skin and poker straight black hair from her hyurian father and bright, almost ghostly ice blue eyes from her mother certainly didn’t help her blend in better. At least the simple pair of jeans and t-shirt and hoodie didn’t clash with everyone around her. She already heard the comments on the airship, and noticed the glance from the mother of the family she lingered near.

The family began to move away, and Ella made the quick decision to follow. She moved to the side farthest from where the man skulked, moving alongside the two teenage boys a bit older than she was. They chatted about their trip, bragging about the souvenirs from Costa Del Sol they were going to show their friends, but Ella was paying no attention. She kept her face forward and head down a bit, but her eyes flicked to the side, watching the man. Her blood began to pound until she heard it rushing in her ears and muffling all else, lightly biting at her lower lip as she even held her breath.

He didn’t see her.

_~Thank the Navigator..~_ she sent up the small prayer as she passed him and then moved further down the hallway, glancing over her shoulder to see the scowling man looking down at his tomephone. 

As the family rounded the corner and headed towards the taxi stand, she broke away from them and kept moving, lengthening her stride to nearly running as she hurried for the trains. As much as she wanted to run, she didn’t want to draw attention in any fashion, simply moving quick and ducking and weaving through the people. A flood of relief came over her as she saw Joye standing near the door, the teen looking around for her. Exhaling a breath, she pushed down her fear deep into her stomach and smiled to the older girl as she came up even with her. “Joye, hi..” She greeted her, a bit breathless from her hurry.

“Ella, hello! I’m glad you made it, I saw the flight was late an’ was worried.” Joye was in obvious ‘business mode’, her honey blond hair pulled into two braids, one on either side of her kind face, bright green eyes wrinkling at the corners when she smiled to the younger girl, highlighting the scattering of freckles across her nose and cheeks. The hyur wore a simple but nice looking black dress, rather like one office ladies would wear on the daily, and a dark green coat with the Haillenarte House crest over her heart. Ella had liked her from the start when she had come down with her sudden aunt and one of her older cousins. The boy, Stephanivien, was nice enough, and had obvious affection for Joye. The brewing irony of this was not lost on the young girl, she knew full well why her mother had left Ishgard: her hyur, not elezen father. Perhaps her mothers rebellion had softened the Haillenarte stance, or made them to not care about the thoughts of society in terms of the mixed relationships, furthered by taking her in now that her parents were gone. _~Or maybe I read too many romances where love wins.~_ Ella thought to herself.

But that had nothing to do with here and now, Ella casting a glance over her shoulder. Joye tilted her head as she turned to walk towards the train they’d be taking. “Is somethin’ the matter?”

Ella’s eyes scanned the crowd quickly, past the tall elezen and focusing on the hyurs. She still didn’t see him, and felt her shoulders relax some. Shaking her head, she looked to the other. “No, there was just...someone who looked familiar at the lobby, is all. Wondering if I could spot them again to know for sure.” 

“A friend?”

The dark haired teen couldn’t stop the brief laugh that came from her, shaking her head. “No, someone I tried to avoid back..” Ella almost said ‘home’, her step faltering slightly. “..back in Limsa.” 

Joye looked to her with a slight smile, the two walking quietly for a moment. They reached the platform for their train, Ella trailing after as she followed Joye to a bench to sit and wait, the train not yet there. Finally, Joye spoke up. “Ah, your things got here yesterday. They’ve been moved into the stablehouse, we can work on them whenever you’re ready.” 

“Oh, good. I know it wasn’t much but I worried...” Ella looked down to her lap, lightly picking at the seam of her pants. She reached up, starting to brush her hair behind her ear, but hesitated a moment, leaving the long length over her shoulders, and covering her ears. She didn’t notice the faint frown that crossed Joye’s face. “I’m sorry to be barging in on your privacy there.”

It was Joye’s turn to not be able to keep back a laugh, the sound cheerful. “Oh, no, you’re doin’ nothin’ of the sort.” Her mild accent became more obvious as she relaxed, making Ella smile. “Trust me, you’ll figure it out soon enough...the main house is uh. Full. You’ve got a whole bunch o’ cousins more than Stephan. An a bunch near your age.”

Ella furrowed her brow a bit at this. Her aunt had said something about all of the kids and thinking one more to the bunch would be no trouble when she overheard her talking to Sisipu, but she hadn’t really thought of it much. For an only child in a city with no other family, the thought of a ‘whole bunch’ was a little daunting. “A bunch, huh?”

Joye nodded, checking the time on her phone. “Yeah, but don’ worry. Most are off on a trip ‘fore class starts. Stephen’s here yet, an Lani will be back tomorrow from her hikin thing, an so on, so they’ll kinda be tricklin back in.” She looked over to the other teen and smiled. “But it makes livin’ in the stablehouse a nice bit o’ quiet. You don’ seem the loud sort that I’d need to worry about, yeah?”

The younger girl couldn’t help but giggle. “Yeah, I don’t take up much space and I’m not loud.” 

“Then we’ll be jus’ fine!”

Ella smiled over to the older girl and then looked down to her lap and her bag, finally calming from her earlier worries and relaxing a bit more. It wasn’t ideal, her arrival in Ishgard, none of it was. But. It was what it was. 

* * *

The train ride wasn’t long, and after most of the crowd departed in the stops in West Brume and Old City, there were very few left on the way up to The Pillars, and most were obviously headed for the Vault, or work uniforms that suggested they worked in the homes there. She felt the glances, the people going to work far less judging than the ones going to the Vault and Cathedral, and found herself shifting closer to Joye. When the older teen noticed this, the hyur sat up straighter, and to Ella’s mild surprise, she noted the quiet girl meeting looks in their direction with fairly straight on focus, letting them know she saw them. Most looked away as soon as they realized they were noticed by someone other than the subject of their disdain. It was a quiet confrontation that she didn’t expect from Joye, but appreciated how it eased her thoughts.

The station in the Pillars was impressive. Ella’s eyes widened as the two girls stepped off themselves, looking up at the vaulted ceiling inset with large panes of decorative stained glass, lit from behind. The stonework was obviously high quality, carved and detailed for what would in other places be simple borders. Crests bearing Halone’s symbol perched at the edges of walls at every corner, busts of the Fury in prominent locations over large archways leading from one section of the station to another. Shops of high quality dotted the halls towards the exits onto the street, breaking up the mosaic covered walls of images of victory and battles against Ishgard’s ancient foe, the long gone Dravanians. Haldrath and his Knights marched across the flowing fields, up mountains and perched on cliffs, striking down the dragons. There were few paintings as grand in Limsa, showing ships on wind tossed seas, but nothing was on such a scale. It hammered home exactly where they were in the city as her eyes found and traced over the four crests of the High Houses, settling on the shield with the large red rose. 

Her family. 

A faint smile quirked her lips as she imagined that to some, she was going to symbolize one of the thorns on the stem, rather than the soft red petals. 

~ _But, it’s the thorns that give the roses the strength against the stampede, isn’t it?~_ The thought came unbidden, Ella bumping lightly into Joye’s shoulder as the hyur came to a stop faster than expected. She blinked at herself, shaking her head a little and looking aside as Joye apologized, having stopped for a luggage cart being pushed by a station employee. The blond smiled as she noticed Ella’s expression. 

“Pretty grand place, innit? Kinda jealous o’ you, gettin’ to see all this for the firs’ time.” Joye smiled, starting to walk again. 

Ella felt her cheeks color slightly as she looked aside. “It’s just a lot. Not much this...grand, in Limsa.” She shook her head no as Joye quizzically gestured towards a far too fancy looking cafe near the entry they were heading for, Joye nodding and continuing to walk. 

“I hope t’ see Limsa someday. All o’ the big cities, really. Donno how realistic that is, but.” Joye looked over to Ella and smiled gently. “Girl can hope, huh?” Ella stopped walking, her eyes searching over Joye’s face, slight smile rising at the blush that flushed over the hyur’s features at the inspection. “What?”

“I just...unno.” Ella smiled and shook her head, stepping up to walk even with Joye and not a step behind as they started again. “So how far are we from home?”

* * *

Home proved to be a short walk from the station, Joye explaining that the Haillenarte manor was closest to the Old City of the four main Houses, pointing out where the other three homes were in general. It was easiest to see the Fortemps manor, the broad parkway between the two houses all that separated them, while there were large, grand buildings between them and the other two. The parkway stretched all the way up to the Vault in the distance, the sight causing Ella to pause again as she stared ahead at the huge, towering buildings, the spires piercing into the bright blue sky above. Limsa certainly was a city of spires of its own, but nothing was so _massive_ , managing to sprawl across her vision as it curled around like something of a pair of wings about the Pillars. Joye pointed out the cathedral on one end, and the grand museum on the other, and Ella exhaled a breath. 

“It’s so...big and grand.” She muttered, Joye nodding in agreement as she started to walk again. By contrast, while the house they headed towards was large, and while clearly grander and more than most other buildings around, somehow it seemed put into its place by the complex at the end of the street. 

The security guard at the house greeted the pair with a smile that struck Ella as genuine, one of the first given to her from someone not Joye. The older elezen stepped forward a little and tilted his head, hands resting on his hips as he looked down at Ella. “Well now, is this our new member of the youth horde?” 

Ella was surprised that she didn’t feel intimidated by how the man loomed above her. He reminded her of some of the roe members of the fisherman’s guild, giants who were gentle as kittens with her. His blue eyes were a soft tone, wrinkled about the corners, shining under the military cut brown hair peppered with white. He wore what she surmised was the male version of the uniform Joye wore, black slacks and white button shirt, similar green jacket with the house crest on a patch over the heart. She could see the peek of a holster below his jacket, however, and the shirt seemed tight over a vest below. Still, she felt no real worry, simply curiosity at the greeting. “Horde?”

Joye laughed and nodded. “Aye, ‘member, you’ve lots o’ cousins. And right ‘s always, Marius. Ella, this is Marius, head of house security.” 

The tall man made a sweeping, overexaggerated bow at the introduction, Ella unable to keep from giggling softly behind her hand. He looked up to her with a smile before straightening up again. “A pleasure to meet you, m’lady. It will be my honor to take you into my protection, even if keeping the gaggle of you kids under watch takes more focus than I’ve ever needed in my years of employ.” He chuckled and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small box and holding it out to Ella, who took it with a curious look. “That there is your key into the house, it works on all of the main entries. Well, it will once we get your fingerprints and signature, for now you’ll need to let Joye let you in and out, we’ll worry about that detail later. Lest you wonder, that’ll keep anyone else from using your key should you lose it or someone take it from you. But do let me know asap if you lose track of it, alright?” 

Ella nodded, looking wide eyed down at the simple box, then holding it up against her chest. “O-okay.” 

Marius reached to pat the top of her head, getting a soft squeak from her as she ducked away. He chuckled. “Oh ho, a shy little bird. Well little bird, don’t fret. We’ll get you settled in time. Let’s let Joye show you where your nest is.” 

Joye nodded and waved to the security head, starting to walk along the front of the house, Ella trailing after after a curious glance at the ornate front door. “We’re goin’ over t’ a side gate. There’s a path that goes alongside o’ the house, an through the garden t’ the stablehouse we’re in. I promised Count Baurendouin t’ let ‘im show you the house. He’s due back this evenin’.” She pulled out a key and held it to the lock on the solid gate they came up to, no keyholes obvious. A click sounded, followed by a soft thunking sound before the gate swung open. 

For what Ella suspected was not the last time today, she found herself staring. This time, it was at the gardens revealed behind the gate. The pathway they stepped onto was covered by a high arched arbor, the wrought iron barely visible below the thick tangle of rose vines that weaved over and around the metal, forming a green tunnel that was surely wide and tall enough to guide a chocobo fit for elezen through. The stone below was a soft gray cobble, worn smooth by generations of Haillenarte passing through. The home to the side was a solid gray stone like most of Ishgard was built with, Ella only partly noting it below the ivy that covered it, her focus on the garden that spread out in front of them as they reached the edge of the home. 

She could say that she genuinely had never seen anything like it. A space she imagined was near as large as the main house itself was sectioned into carefully manicured patches of a hearty grass, paved pathways weaving through between the grassy areas and the carefully laid out flower and vegetable beds. Even what was obviously food growing for the house managed to look sculpted and ornate, she knowing that the Haillenarte’s were known for having successfully cultivated dozens of hearty vegetables suitable for the occasionally harsh Coerthas environment, and the vegetable gardens held the highest quality samples of what she imagined were each of these. The early summer flowers bloomed in a rainbow of colors, not sectioned off by hue, but scattered about in a planned sort of chaos carefully contained within the trimmed borders of each bed, going from the tallest of the blooms towards the backs and centers of the gathering to lower, smaller and finally ground covering sorts at the edges. The only beds that were sharp in their edges were the vegetables, the edges of the flower beds flowed and weaved about in such a way that showed they were placed with the eye of an artist amid the few massive trees that dotted the yard. Her eyes quickly spotted the swing that hung from one of the trees, she wasn’t sure what kind of tree it was, and a free standing swing below another, tucked back into the flowers in a private corner.

At the center of the garden was a fountain, shaped like a bouquet of roses set in a vase that was resting at a slight tilt. Water flowed from the vase into a wide circular base, even this housing more plants of the aquatic variety. Ella found herself hoping there were fish within. A paved patio circled the fountain, benches and two swings set about in a way to encourage conversation, a fire pit to one side with more benches and tables there. She and Joye followed one of the paths that weaved its way through the garden, naturally drawing the eye through the space as they walked. Towards the back rose the glass walls of a greenhouse, a bit of condensation on the windows that masked most of what was within, though obvious splashes of color and greenery made clear what was there. Directly behind and offset to the side to not block the sun from the greenhouse rose a two story rectangular, wooden building.

Ella’s brow furrowed as she looked to the wooden structure. It was old, but seemed well built and sturdy, the faded metal bonnet roof with three coplas marked it as the former stables turned into a house. Stable doors were still in place, but no longer looked that they would move, forming walls now, newer windows that were elegantly simple placed within them to light the building within. The center coupla looked to have been converted to a chimney, the other two she hoped were still decorative. Even though it was early summer, Ella felt the chill Coerthas was known for, especially to her having always lived in the warmth of Vylbrand. 

Joye led to the actual door and again brought out her key, but this time there was a lock to set it into, opening it and swinging it open, smiling as she held it open for the other girl to enter first. Ella glanced back at the garden and greenhouse curiously, but that same curiosity drew her into the building in front of her. 

It was a relatively modern layout that she stepped into. The door led into a large open area that was a combination of uses; a lounge area of several chairs and sofas that looked old and worn and she suspected rejected from the manor house surrounded a positively ancient, obviously dented on one side cylindrical metal stove that was more intricate than nearly anything else she had seen yet, and currently unlit, on a low stone platform, pipe rising up through the ceiling above. Pillows and blankets of every type draped about in a bit of colorful, worn and comfortable chaos, obviously patched and repaired and like the furniture, salvaged from the main home. There was no ‘set’ to any of it, pieces that had no visible relation to the other, various ages and levels of faded, worn and scratched, one of the chairs with a clearly repaired leg that looked nothing like the others. A tv sat on one of the shelves of a wall sized bookshelf, an old radio on another, and only a few books on the rest, it looked like it yearned for more. The stone floor was softened by numerous rugs, a worn Limosan style blue on one side, carefully woven rag rugs on the other. 

She rather liked it, smiling as she stepped in and set her luggage and bag down on the floor, taking it in. On the other side of the lounge area was a mixed kitchen and dining area, simple appliances that looked like the newest things in the entire place, but mismatched in terms of color. A white refrigerator stood on one wall, while the stove was black. A chrome toaster was next to a startlingly pink coffee maker, and a white water kettle. She supposed this piecemeal theme continued in terms of the cutlery and dishware, her smile only growing. The table there was big enough for at least eight to comfortably sit, marked by green placemats.

A wall finally was on the other side of the kitchen that the refrigerator was against, only going halfway up the height of the building, revealing a loft on the other side of the railing there. The stairway up to the loft formed something of a wall for the kitchen to separate it from the hallway that ran along the left side of the building, looking that there was cupboard storage below it. Joye stepped into the building behind her as Ella moved away from the door, looking around wide eyed as she made her way through the two rooms and into the hallway. A faded maroon carpet runner covered the stone floor here and ran down the hallway, a few subtle sconce lights on the wall for lighting. She counted four doors, three of which were open. The first immediate door opened into a sizeable bathroom that was plain, but her glance suggested it was the most organized in the sense that everything looked like it belonged to the same set in terms of towels, rugs and bath items. 

The next door opened to an empty room, simple with white walls waiting for a personal touch. The next was closed, but the last peeked open to reveal a bedroom, Ella looking away before she took in any real details, supposing it belonged to Joye. She glanced up, noting that the loft only extended over the bathroom and the first of the two rooms, the rest was walled off. Trailing back over to the end of the stairway, she looked up at it, then over to Joye, who had come over into the kitchen area. 

“You’ve got your choice o’ rooms. The lofts big, so if you wanted you could make a bedroom o’ it tucked back against the wall there. ‘S warm up there, an I thought you might like it for that. ‘M used to Ishgard bein’ cold sometimes!” Joye smiled wide, gesturing up the stairs with her chin. “There’s storage up there filled with furniture an’ things from the manor house, stuff the Lord might be wantin’ t’ use ‘gain, so we gotta be leavin’ that there. If you want somethin’ with a proper door, there’s the room right after the bath, the one closed door is where the water heater an air heater for here is, bit more storage. Admit I like usin’ the wood stove more’n the air heater when needin’ it, if you keep t’ bedroom doors shut they’re fine, they put good insulation in the walls when convertin’ this from a chocobo stable. I did take the last room for me.” She paused a moment, then blinked. “Oh, an’ your boxes are in the first room here, jus’ realized if you didn’ go in you might have missed seein’.”

Ella exhaled the bit of tension she hadn’t realized was growing at not knowing where the boxes were, nodding as she turned and sat down on the steps to the loft, the weight of being there and the finality of it all starting to settle on her shoulders. “I suppose I need to decide so I have somewhere to sleep, huh?” She softly asked, looking past Joye and to the room beyond. 

The blond considered the other girl a bit, standing silently near the table before she smiled lightly, walking over and turning to sit down on the step as well, shaking her head a bit. “No, you don’ have t’. This all ‘s really...a lot. A couple o’ ideas for you…’ve got a big ol’ bed, we could share till we get somethin’ set up for you. Or we could both crash out here on the couches.” She gestured to the two mismatched pieces of furniture. “No need t’ hurry. When you decide, we’ll get help from the house an’ get your bed setup an’ a dresser t’ start.” 

Ella looked at the couches and nodded a bit, not needing to decide instantly was clearly welcome as she sat quietly. After a bit, she gently leaned to Joye’s side, her head coming to rest on the older girls shoulder, where they sat together in silence.

* * *

Baurendouin stood at the library window later that evening, looking out towards the garden below, the Lord of the House looking thoughtful as he settled his evening jacket on his shoulders.. He watched the newest addition to the home as she sat at the edge of the fountain, trailing her fingers over the water in the basin and dabbling at the large koi she looked quite happy to have found there. He couldn’t help but smile faintly, clasping his hands behind his back. He didn’t turn as he heard the click of the door behind him or the quiet steps approach, Marius stepping up to his side. 

“You got her blood sample with no issue?” Baurendouin asked, glancing to the side to see Marius looking out at the same sight he was. 

The other elezen nodded. “Aye, m’lord. The system automatically placed her below the House, lest you have any doubt that she bears your blood.”

The Count chuckled lightly. “Did you? She has her mothers eyes, and kind face. Intelligent, and extremely observant. I had no doubt she learned the layout of the manor as I showed her through it, first time. And now she plays with the fish. If only she knew it was her own mother who placed those koi in there, much to our mothers dismay.” He smiled wistfully. “Good thing they benefited the plants.” 

“Oh, I didn’t doubt it the instant I saw her coming down the road. She’s of rose blood, for certain.” Marius pulled a phone from his pocket, thumb swiping over the screen. “Standard security for her?”

Baurendouin was silent at the question. His other sister, Ella’s aunt, had gotten additional information from the Limosian security forces when she went to meet their wayward niece, and the guild who cared for her had concerns. A slight narrowing of his eyes came as he watched Joye join Ella by the fountain, finally shaking his head. “No, keep it enhanced for now. The Bishop’s agreement with Limsa has the unfortunate soul within the city now as well, and we dare not ignore the worries of the fisherman. They cared for my sister and her family where we did not, it is time we make up for our transgression and keep her safe. Joye will be with her for a good while, but eventually we will need someone with her and Francel in the other school, in addition to who’s there already. Draw from the Cartneau garden funding.” He looked over to Marius and nodded once. “We may be the least of the four, but we are still a High House, we dare not allow any weakening of our Pillar.”

Marius bowed. “Yes, m’lord.” He turned on his heel, phone back in his pocket as he reached up to his earpiece, speaking quietly as he exited the library. 

Looking back outside, Baurendouin sighed softly, then moved away from the window to his desk, touching the frame of a small picture there. It held an image of his younger self, and a young woman who one would be forgiven for mistaking for the girl in the garden. He sat in his chair, picking up the picture and drawing it close, murmuring soft. “Antoinette, forgive me for letting things cause you to leave us. Yet do not despair, your child is home, and we shant make the same mistakes that drove you from us ever again.” He set the picture back into it’s place and looked out the window again. 

“I swear it.”


End file.
